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Kia announces record July sales
Kia Motors achieves record high sales in the States in July, while both, Kia Soul and Forte post very strong sales!
Kia Motors America reported earlier today that it has achieved record high sales in July, thanks to impressive sales of both new models, the 2010 Soul crossover and Forte compact sedan. Kia’s July 2009 sales rose up for a total of 29,345 units, while its year-to-date-sales now stands at impressive 176,749 units.
Kia Forte has hardly hit the dealers in the States and yet, it has already achieved an impressive sales result. In it’s first full month in American market, Forte sales totaled at 3,631 units, which is very encouraging for the coming months.
Kia Forte is a compact sedan that is going to replace Spectra sedan, Kia’s best selling model for years. Spectra has not been discontinued from Kia’s line-up just yet and it still performs pretty well. Despite it’s age, Spectra remains to be one of the hottest selling Kia vehicle in the States.
The best selling Kia last month was Sportage SUV with 7,266 units sold. It was closely followed by Spectra and Soul crossover with sales of 5,616 and 4,853 units respectively. Soul has once again proved to be an attractive buy as it’s sales increased more than 2,000 units from June.
In the first seven months of fiscal year, Kia sold 176,749 units in the States. In addition, Korean carmaker also has achieved record market share gain in 2009, rising nearly 50 percent to a 3.1 percent share! “Our brand messaging is resonating with consumers and is a true indicator of the company’s growth in the past year with nearly 29 percent of July sales from new Soul and Forte models,” said Tom Loveless, vice president of sales at Kia Motors America. “We are sustaining momentum for the fifth consecutive month this year, up 9.3 percent from June, and showroom traffic has more than doubled in the final week of July with the C.A.R.S. program in full swing.”
Kia sales by model table: July 2009
YES! Go Kia, Keep it up! Once Spectras are gone, Kia will put some rebates on the Forte, and then Forte sales will jump big time! I sure hope CARS continues funding, this is just what Kia needed, and it has shown!
2010 1/4 all new kia No3(Europe Only)
2010 1/4 all new kia VG
2010 1/4 all new kia sorento
2010 2/4 all new kia sportage
2010 3/4 all new kia TF(optima)
Once again HKAG outsold Nissan as a group in the US, by over 3K units, so no big surprise Kia has a few lines that outsold their Nissan counterpart.
Nissan is a small step. I pray that one of these months HKAG outsells ford! ford is a deceptive evil company looking to sell way overpriced mexican made illegal immigrant carrying eyesore crap to ignorant unsuspecting American consumers! COME ON HKAG, SELL, SELL, SELL!
While it may seem like Kia is finally making a real statement in the marketplace, our status as providers of true world-class automobiles will not be validated until we have convinced every person working for Kia that we are indeed for real.
More negatives come from salespeople who are selling our products than I hear from the public at large. To me it’s simple; Kia is beginning to build a bullet-proof vehicle, now it’s our turn (those of us who work for Kia) to build a bullet-proof experience. Stop apologizing and begin appreciating. Time is on our side. We will continue to set new records and deliver to the public a great car for an absolutely remarkable price. GO KIA!
If Kia’s were sold out of Kia Dealerships its a different story Tom, but when they are sold out multiline dealerships the kia’s always get pushed to the back. Maybe someday all the Kia Dealership will be stand alone operations.
These sales figures are poop, the Rio is doing horrible the Rondo is doing crappy, the Forte is not doing as well as expected the Sportage, Spectra, Forte, and Soul saved us.
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The Accent, Elantra, Genesis, and Santa Fe saved us over at Hyundai.
The Rio is stupid! The Forte and Soul are just a little more expensive, and kick the Rios ass in terms of Features. Not to mention MUCH better in performance, and about equal in fuel economy. The Rio sucks, plain and simple. The Rondo needs to be advertised. Our dealership has sold over 200 Rondos this year, and that is only because of dealership advertising.
YTD the Amanti is killing over last year!
Optima sales suck, Sportage sales are only so good because Kia offers a navigation system now. We can’t give away an LX Sportage, but an EX or especially an EX with a navi don’t sit a day on the lot. I can’t believe the Sedona sold 3rd best YTD.
A lot of people say why buy the Rio when I can get the Accent or something else. KIA has to work on that, especially when outgoing Spectra inventory is the same price.
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In the Future the Rio will be the cheapest car in the Hyundai/KIA Line. Whats wrong with $8700-$15,000 Rios with all of the trimmings? Let the Rio be the sport one catered to tuners and thoe who just want a nice looking reliable gas sipper, while the Accent is made out to be to the premium compact of choice.
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Have the Rio compete with the Fit, and the Accent against the Mini and Small Audis. The Accent is mor erleiable than the MINI etc.. Make that a selling point. The Rio is more rleiable than the Fit make that a seling point. The Rio should have 3 and 5 doors. The Accent Should be 4 and 5 doors, and sell the Veloster as a sporty Accent Variant.
Thats my suggestions for the next gen models coming out in 14 months.
Greg the word is out big time that the Next Gen Amanti is in development. Its the rave in all of the car fourms, and I bet a lot of people who are in that Amanti Market are waiting. I also think some of them are waiting for the Amanti clearance sales as well.
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I wish the eocnomy wasnt so bad, because Id try to sell either Hyundais or KIAs on the weekend.
Na the next generation Rio will most probably be built to rival European rivals – such as the Renault Clio, Peugeot 207, Ford Fiesta, Vauxhall Corsa and Hyundai i20 (which has actually been named as one of the best Superminis by not only WhatCar? but AutoCar as well – two of the most popular and respected car magazines in the UK).
If Kia uses the i20 platform for the new Rio but makes it look a whole lot better than the i20 than they will definately have a winner on their hands – the only criticism of the i20 is that it is bland.
i20 is boring car, inside out, and I really hope Kia will not follow Hyundai when they bring new Rio. Hope they bring something that is a lot more pleasing to our eyes.
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After a short-test drive with the new i20, I can tell you that the car does not deserve to be named one of the best B-segment cars and I’ll dare to say that this is probably the worst car that Hyundai launched in the last few years. Ok, the model is better than Getz – it’s predecessor, but it can not compete against other B-segmen cars. At one of the comparison tests, i20 finished dead last among six cars from the segment.
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Still, if you’re looking for a bargain, its probably a great choice and hard to beat, but…
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And don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to bitch Hyundai, I LIKE the company and their cars very much, and if there were no Kia, I’d be a Hyundai fan! It’s just that with i20, Hyundai failed to show all the technical knowledge it has gained in the past few years.
The i20 is bland I admit but it’s waaaaaaaaay better than the Rio – which is still at Getz level.
The i20 platform would at least bring it up to date.
My point was that it would be a good starting point.
I just hope Kia is adventerous as they were the Soul on their upcoming cars and not water them down as much as they have with the new Sorento – which looks good but is nowhere near as stunning as the renderings and sketches suggested it would be.
I hope that new Rio design we saw on here is not the latest and greatest and the one they use-they need to sport-up the new Rio design. I think there’s a market for a Rio-size car for Kia, even in America, but that design we saw is indeed too bland. I’d get another Lancer GTS or even a new Lancer Sportback, IF and I mean IF, Kia has not developed the hot new Forte. I am watching Kia Forte Hybrid development closely, that car should be much more affordable than the bug-eyed Mitsubishi i-MiEV coming out next year to world markets (already out in Japan). These are huge “green car” developments months and Kia’s new Forte Hybrid has more than captured my attention, that puppy is as hot as downtown Tucson, AZ, in August.
Himi, according to Car and Driver Magazine the i20 seems more designed to American tastes than European Tastes. They took an expeidition to Europe to try the car out. They really like it.
You need to see the Koup in person, it puts the lancer to shame. The only downside is not releasing the Koup with a turbo, I don’t know what they were thinking. I hope they offer a special edition SUPER KOUP with a turbo, its already available in the genesis..
They will produce a turbo Koup, but I am pretty sure not until 2012 or 2013.
For what it’s worth, Kia was up 29.6% in Canada in July. They were 1,381 units behind Mazda, compared to a difference of 4,024 July ’08 (Mazda was down -18.5%).
By then it will be too late, the car design will be old in most people’s eyes, they need to come out swinging..
Himi, that i20 though significantly smaller than the Accent, is light years ahead of the Accent in tech, and materials. As the i20 replaced both the Accent and the Getz in Europe, Hyundai might not have made a home run with this car, but its a good platform to build Next Gen Rios and Next Gen Accents with it.
-Car and Driver Magazine says:
– “Its between a Honda Fit/Jazz and an Audi A2 in fit and finish, and thats exactly what Hyundai seems to be shooting for. More Premium but less futuristic looking than the Honda Fit, but it does not quite Oooze the Premium feel and quality as the Audi. A good start for Hyundai, and it shows it can make good premium small cars too.”
This car makes them very optimistic about the replacement small cars from HKAG North America.
You cant be too hard on the i20 which is one of the top selling small cars in Europe, and one of the final 10 Nominees for European Car of the year.
Also, the demographic buying the i20 is different than the demographics buy the Ford Fiestas Renault Clio (Nissan Versa) etc…Ford Fiestas are bought by young professional women. Hyundai i20 are bought by young professional men, the Nissan Versa is bought by a cross section.
Look at the cars and youll obviously see Fiesta=for girls i20=for boys. Maybe thats some of my American cowboy coming out, but thats how I see both cars.
Ermm kind of. I think in England certainly the i20 is really being snapped up by those seeking a small family car under the Scrappage Scheme however although the i20 (like I said before) is one of the top superminis out today. it is definately lacking the style, class and presence of the Fiesta.
My original point was then that Kia should use this critically-acclaimed platform and just make the Rio a bit sportier, classier and MUCH MORE stylish =P
Is the scrappage scheme anything like CARS in the US? Where they disable the engine and sell the parts and metal for scraps, and then give the customer a large rebate?
The Fiesta looks like its filled with cheap Plastics, the i20 does not. The Fiesta looks like a Pizza with bad ingriedients make to look great. So some people will think it tastes better becuase it looks better, but the more rustic looking Pizza (Hyundai i20) is the real classy one to those who actually care about Food.
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Did anybody also forget that the Fiesta costs more than the i20, and the Fiesta is from a 3rd rate car company with something to prove (well at least here in the US) while the i20 is from an Aspirational Luxury Make?
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Did anybody also forget that for US sale the Fiesta will be made in Mexico, and Mexican factories are notourious for some of the worst build quality on the planet, while the Rio is made at the superb Ulsan Korea facility next to the Accent?
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Did anybody forget that the i20 has more Horsepower and better Gas mileage than the Fiesta?
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Hyundai will offer leather products in the US, Ford wont. The Fiesta might be great or Europe, btu it will be made like crap for the US Market since Hyundai actually cares about its US customers unlike Ford.
The Rio will Probably be smaller than the Soul and Accent. The Fiesta and i20 are smaller than the 3 door Accent by 3 inches. Just think the Accent Sedan is 13 inches longer than the Fiesta or the i20, and Size Matters in America too. People find the Accent to be small here, I wonder how they will feel about the Fiesta. No.3 would look nice as a 5 door Accent, its size is quite adequate for American tastes. Antyhing smaller, might be small enough to turn some people off.
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Then again the i20 MPV should be the US Accent on the outside, but that interior has to get the Amero (Gensis Coupe/ix-35) treatment. The Amero Interiors are more crisp and alive than the Euro Interiors, though the ix-35 was developed in Europe. The Hyundai i20s red colored gauge pods have more in common with the New KIA than the new Hyundai.
The Rio is made at the Sohari plant. Fords leather sucks anyway. It reminds me of the material used on bus seats. I like the Accent sedan best out of all the Accents. Why isn’t there a three door Rio? Oh, and in regards to the Ford factories in Mexico – F*CK THEM! If you have ever been to El Paso, you would see the trains carrying Fords across, and all of the illegal immigrants jumping off the train! Where the hell do you think they are coming from? You can build a wall as high as you want at the border, but as long as those f**king d*mn fords are coming across the border on those trains, we will have beaners.
I am proud to say i am one of the 510 that purchased the borrego. Awesome truck.
Thanks anthony, glad you like your Borrego, it is an awesome truck. Did you use the Cash for Clunkers program to buy it?
Greg, without those beaners who is going to cut our grass and clean our toilets. and make our hospitals go broke and close emergency rooms and overcrowd our school with little cockroaches who can’t speak english and now millions of dollars are being wasted to teach them how to beat the system and now Obama and Pelosi are going to give them social security, foodstamps and free health care. Yeah..Reward the law breakers.. U.S.A…U.S.A… You Essay Vato..Jose Can you see??
Speaking, as Greg was in the first comment, about Spectras being gone, has anyone checked your local Kia dealer? The one in my town has none left and I counted only five Fortes there, though their website lists eleven Fortes. I saw a salesman and what appeared to be a customer filling a Forte when I was getting gas Saturday and it sounded like a sale was in progress.
Anyway, three other dealers in the area each have three left according to their sites; The fourth dealer shows THIRTY Spectras still in stock. Looks like C4C is clearing the Spectras out, but curious about what others are seeing.
Well Greg, could have relaxed with the racial slur there? I can understand youre angry like a lot of Americans, but its not the Mexicans fault for being opportunistic.
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The Accent Sedan has rubbish leg room in back Greg. It was a nice ride, but the leg room lost them a sale on the 4 door. The 3 door has Adequate Leg room. If I can get my 6ft 2 frame in the back of the 3 door, with another 6 ft footer sitting in the drivers seat then it was a slam dunk. I will be trading her in though when the new Accents come out. She has been a good car to me, but i just want more in terms of feautures: Luxury, ultility, and fuel economy. BTW Greg, I didnt know that ford’s leather was of such a lower quality. You can buy that kind of leather off EBay for $100 a set, whats the point in spending an extra $2000-$6000 for it in a package.
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Chajee, robots will eventually replace them. They are working on it and it will happen soon enough.
Whatever people think of Ford in the US. Ford’s cars in the UK are some of the best mainstream cars money can buy.
The Fiesta is not made of cheap plastics. Read the magazines – the Fiesta always beats the i20 when it comes to the interior.
The i20 sells because it is very capable and NEARLY as good as the likes of the Vauxhall/Opel Corsa and Ford Fiesta but is much CHEAPIER.
There is no need to criticise Ford. They did a great job with the new Fiesta which looks amazing – and according to all the respected car journalists is amazing in much more ways than one.
JonathanLGardner-Ford is scoring big-time with their new Fusion Hybrid as well. It is grabbing people over from the import realm to Ford, and, from an article on the net I just read tonight, it is bringing people back to Ford who had previously bought Ford’s long ago and have been consuming imports for quite some time. And Ford didn’t have to borrow from Uncle Sam, either. They still have substantial debt but plan on working through it-in other words, paying their debts off. Nice plan, Ford.
I bet the Fiesta will be made of cheap plastics here John, but if Ford is so good then why do we sell more cars than they do now?
We can be 3rd place in the World with the right product, becuase GM sales are still dropping off a cliff, while ours keep soaring.
Hyundai/Kia sell more because people (in these hard times) are willing to sacrafice a bit of style if it means they can get a car nearly as good and JUST AS WELL EQUIPPED for much less than they would if they bought a Fiesta or Corsa.
The Scrappage Scheme only means that these already cheap cars can be snapped up even cheaper =P
I’m just really keen for Kia to update their whole range.
All of Hyundai’s latest offerings – the i10, i20 and i30 are in the top 5 lists of their categories on whatcar’s website (www.whatcar.co.uk)
And like I have said before, the only criticism of these cars are their bland styling. All Kia has to do is make them look stunning – like the VG, Forte and Forte Koup – and they could definately have some class leaders on their hands =D